Colorado’s average gasoline price rose above $3 a gallon today for the first time since early August, pushed by crude oil that threatened to break $100 a barrel but then fell back.
Self-service regular in Colorado cost an average of $3.03 today, compared with $2.21 a year ago, according to AAA.
After hitting a record high of $3.34 a gallon on May 24, prices had been steadily falling until mid-October, when rising costs of crude oil began hitting the gasoline market.
“Our prices had been lagging the increase in crude oil” because of low seasonal demand after Labor Day, said Stan Dempsey Jr., president of the Colorado Petroleum Association. “Now our low-demand period is coming to an end, and we’re starting to head into the holiday season, with more demand for fuel.”
Oil prices stalled today in their anticipated rise toward $100 a barrel after a Department of Energy report said oil inventories fell less than expected last week.
Light, sweet crude for December delivery fell 33 cents to settle at $96.37 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Before the report’s release, prices rose to $98.62, a new record.
